STXL-11002 chip problem?

That looks optical. Check the filter wheel and shutter.

 

It's pretty much impossible to get a diagonal line due to a problem with a CCD sensor. They read out on a grid after all.

Watch the operation of the shutter while imaging - can you see anything odd happening?

 

How are you illuminating the camera? There's a shadow in the right, and a bright diagonal line at the top.

 

What optics were in front of the camera, if any?

 

You can get weird shadows if there are no optics on the camera. At least put a piece of white printer paper in front of the aperture, and shoot through that. It will diffuse the light. Adjust the exposure accordingly.

One other thing to check - do you have RBI mode enabled?

 

Just jumping in here - can you take a FITS image and send that ? If it is too big, please use Dropbox or WeTransfer.

 

Can you upload a dark frame, same exposure conditions?

 

A light leak could do this, but it would have to be in front of the shutter. Otherwise it would show up in dark frames.

The RBI mitigation feature is not necessary for the KAI-11002 sensor, but like all other STXL models the camera includes the infrared LEDs. If there was a circuit failure that caused one of the LEDs to turn on slightly, it might partially illuminate the sensor. That might be the source of the bright bar, but it is just a guess. The problem with this hypothesis is that it doesn't explain why the problem occurs only on light frames, not dark frames. The LEDs are behind the shutter.

The only other thing I can conceive of is an electrical failure that destabilizes the analog power supplies when the various clocking pulses occur... but I'm hard-pressed to explain the pattern being produced. Also it doesn't happen on dark frames, so I think that rules out this theory.

It really looks optical to me - some kind of light leak.

If you can put together a simple test rig, you might be able to prove/disprove the light leak theory. Get a foot long PVC tube large enough to sit on top of the adapter plate. Put a couple of layers of white printer paper on the top end, to provide a diffuse light source (just using room illumination). Wrap the bottom part of the PVC tube and the entire camera in an opaque black cloth so no light can leak into the camera. Leave the cooler off so it doesn't get hot. (Don't leave it like this for a very long time - it might eventually overheat the camera.)

Take light and dark frames. If there's a light leak this should eliminate it. Then you can fiddle about to figure out where the leak is.

If you still see the pattern, try blocking the top of the PVC tube so there's no light and take another light frame.

If none of this pans out, I can only suggest sending in the camera for service.

 

Brian - Doug has given some good advice.
I've been following this, and the dark looks perfect.

I'd try his test as a next step.

What's the serial number of the camera and filter wheel?

It really does look optical - like an edge of something is in the light path - eg filter slot misalignment, shutter misalignment or timing problem, some optical oddity like something in the light path or a light leak.

Here's another line of thinking:
An exposure time of 0.002s is very short - the spec for a new camera was 0.001s, so this is close to the minimum. Does it show up in longer exposures like 10s (with less light getting to the camera?)
Am wondering if there is a timing problem.

Could you check the SBIG Driver Checker is version 4.05? (Use the About/Help button), and then on the Firmware tab, check if the camera firmware is current?

Just for the heck of it, could you try testing the camera with CCDOps or MaxIm?
I'm wondering if there is some oddball software issue where its shooting the image before the filter wheel is in position, or some firmware discrepancy.

I noticed you're running TheSky X, and there's a newer daily build than the one you have. (current is 10.5.0 13878)

Have you taken a photo using a cellphone down the nose of the camera while doing a long exposure (eg enough time for you to take a picture) ? Am wondering if you see anything not in the correct position.
Am wondering if the drive belt for the shutter or filter wheel is worn out.

 

Let's rule out the IR preflash diodes. You can't see them with your eye, of course, because you can't see IR. But a camera can.

Open the shutter (e.g. long exposure) and point a phone camera into the aperture. See if there's a glow coming from one of the sides or corners just outside the sensor.

Also please visually check whether the shutter is operating normally - fully open when open, fully closes when closed.